ARE TRUCKS & SUVS BECOMING THE “LUXURY SPORTS CARS” IN AUTO LEASING?

Vehicle Lease Preferences Show Noticeable Changes in Type of Vehicle, Term, Brand Loyalty

Cincinnati, OH (October 1, 2018)

Swapalease.com, the nation’s largest car lease marketplace, unveiled today new analysis of its marketplace trends that show a culture of automotive preferences that continues to be redefined by America’s enchantment of trucks and SUVs. The analysis shows interesting preference trends that have changed for auto leasing that may help the industry understand what consumers want in a lease.

Trucks & SUVs Replacing Luxury Sports Sedans

During the second quarter of 2016, roughly 27.5% of Swapalease.com drivers listed their vehicle under the category of “luxury sports sedan”, while another 24.0% listed their vehicle as either a truck or an SUV. During the second quarter of 2018 these numbers essentially reversed, with 22.8% listing a luxury sports sedan and 27.2% listing a truck or an SUV as their current vehicle lease.

As far as the type of vehicle consumers “want” to drive, 30.3% listed an SUV during the second quarter of 2018, and this number increased to 32.9% in 2018. For small cars, this number dropped from 7.1% in 2016 down to 6.7% in 2018.

Shorter Terms Continue To Increase

Vehicle leases have historically been written for either 36- or 39-month terms. However, during the second quarter of 2016 roughly 50.1% of drivers said their ideal lease term was for two years; this number increased to 54.1% during the second quarter of 2018. For a three-year lease, 42.8% listed this term as ideal in 2016; while only 39.4% listed this term as ideal in 2018.

Domestic vs. Import Leases | Brand Loyalty

Historically, the majority of leases written were for foreign brands, and this trend seems to be growing over the last few years. Approximately 66.0% of drivers said they were currently driving a foreign brand for their lease in 2016, and this number increased slightly to 68.2% in 2018. What’s more, while 44.7% said they wanted their next vehicle lease to be with a different brand in 2016, this number increased to 49.9% in 2018.

“America continues to say they want to drive trucks and SUVs rather than smaller cars, and this is especially true in a lease environment,” said Scot Hall, Executive Vice President of Swapalease.com. “We still see very attractive and aggressive deals on smaller car leases, and we certainly don’t think these will go away any time soon, but it would be wise for dealers, OEMs and even lenders to take note of this trend to build lease offers around their trucks and SUVs to satisfy this growing demand further.”